Jan. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., the
independent studio behind the “Saw” horror movies, rose to the
highest level in more than four years on prospects for the March
release of the film “The Hunger Games.”

Lions Gate jumped 11 percent to $10.83 at the close, the
highest share price since August 2007. The gain, the biggest
since October 2008, brings the increase this year to 30 percent.

Vice Chairman Michael Burns said on CNBC yesterday that the
growing popularity of “The Hunger Games” books by Suzanne
Collins boosts the outlook for the film. The company, based in
Vancouver and run from Santa Monica, California, acquired rival
Summit Entertainment this month. The purchase gave Lions Gate
ownership of the “Twilight” teen vampire films, including one
more theatrical release set for November.

“The trend seems to be our friend here,” Burns told CNBC
after the market close yesterday. “We think it certainly feels
like a monster.”

The first of four “The Hunger Games” films, about teens
fighting for their lives in a post-apocalyptic world, may
generate $200 million in domestic box-office sales, according to
Matthew Harrigan, an analyst with Wunderlich Securities in
Denver who recommends the stock. The movie opens March 23.

“The pipe dream was that this would be tantamount to the
‘Twilight’ franchise,” Harrigan said in an interview. “People
aren’t willing to go there yet, but it’s looking possible.”

The first four “Twilight” films have taken in $1.07
billion in domestic box-office sales and $2.5 billion worldwide,
according to Box Office Mojo, an industry tracker.

Investors may also be reassessing the company following its
successful defense of a hostile takeover bid by Carl Icahn, a
period of depressed cash flow and the acquisition of Summit,
Harrigan said.

Lions Gate bought Summit for $412.5 million, most of it
financed with the target company’s cash, plus assumed debt. Last
week the company named Summit’s two top executives, Rob Friedman
and Patrick Wachsberger, to lead its film division.